Chapter 118: Chapter 116: Returning to the City to Kill

At the command, the soldiers charged forward. But they hadn’t gotten far when several pebbles shot out from the darkness, knocking the men in front to the ground.

Amid cries of pain, the soldiers, who had been posturing so arrogantly just moments before, all retreated, their faces filled with fear.

They were fine bullying people like Qiao Le, but when they met a real challenge, they immediately chickened out.

Cong Bo’s expression changed, and he halted his own forward advance.

’The situation is unclear,’ he thought. ’Who knows if this fugitive has accomplices? If there’s an ambush waiting in the darkness, wouldn’t I be walking right into danger by rushing in recklessly?’

Just then, Chen Baimei arrived.

She held a longbow, and a rare trace of anger appeared on her icy face.

With her current archery skills, she almost never missed.

To think she would stumble here today.

The worst part was that she didn’t even know who her opponent was before they escaped. One could only imagine her frustration.

"Why aren’t you giving chase?" Chen Baimei demanded coldly.

Cong Bo chuckled softly and gestured for her to go ahead, a clear invitation for her to pursue them herself if she wanted, and to stop questioning him.

Chen Baimei shot Cong Bo a cold glance, then turned and left without a word.

At this moment, Yang Ying sidled up to him and muttered, "That woman has such a strange temper..."

Before the words were even out of her mouth, Cong Bo raised his hand and slapped her. The blow sent Yang Ying sprawling to the ground, blood trickling from her mouth and nose.

Then Cong Bo said coldly, "Who do you think you are, daring to pass judgment on someone from Cyan Cloud Mountain?"

Yang Ying’s pretty face was bright red—whether from the slap or from shame, it was hard to tell. She apologized profusely.

"Commander, please forgive me! I was just speaking carelessly and offended your honored mountain. I deserve to die!"

Cong Bo looked down at the trembling Yang Ying and said in an icy tone, "Remember, you’re nothing but a treacherous bitch. When I have a use for you, you come crawling. When I don’t, you get the hell away from me. Understand?"

"Yes!" Yang Ying replied softly, her head bowed.

"Move out!" Cong Bo waved his hand, and the soldiers under his command retreated like a receding tide.

Only Yang Ying was left, sitting slumped on the ground, her head bowed, lost in thought.

Only after Cong Bo and his men were long gone did Yang Ying’s personal maid hurry over from a distance, trembling with fear.

"Madam, please get up," the young maid said, helping Yang Ying to her feet.

Half of Yang Ying’s face was badly swollen, and blood dripped incessantly from the corner of her mouth. She no longer had a trace of her former stunning beauty; she looked more like a specter.

The young maid took one look and was too frightened to look again.

But then Yang Ying suddenly spoke. "Do I look very ugly right now?"

The young maid shuddered. "N-No..."

"Then why can’t you bring yourself to look at me?" Yang Ying asked coldly.

"I... I..." The young maid was at a loss for words.

"Tie this bitch up. Tomorrow, send her to the barracks to entertain the troops! I’m sure those soldiers will like her very much," Yang Ying squeezed the words through her teeth, then turned and walked away.

The young maid’s face went deathly pale. She dropped to her knees with a THUD and kowtowed, her head hitting the ground like a pestle pounding garlic as she begged Yang Ying for mercy.

"Madam, spare my life! Please, spare my life!"

But Yang Ying paid her no mind, climbing into the waiting carriage in the distance and departing without a backward glance.

As for the young maid, she was dragged away by her hair by several burly women.

This was a barren mountain outside the walls of Wuyang Guard. It was covered in a blanket of white snow, utterly desolate. There were no signs of people, not even a single bird or beast.

But just then, a figure flew through the air and landed atop a large tree. It was none other than Wu Liangchen.

He first released his grip, setting Yang Lian’Er down on a branch, before lowering his sister from his back.

After doing all this, Wu Liangchen slowly exhaled. A plume of white breath shot out like an arrow for more than a meter before gradually dissipating.

"Alright, we should be safe here," Wu Liangchen said.

This place was several miles from Wuyang Guard and very remote. Even if they dispatched a large force of soldiers to search, they wouldn’t be able to find this spot in a short time.

"You two rest here for a bit. I’m going to check the area for a suitable place to hide."

With that, Wu Liangchen leaped from the treetop and dashed into the barren mountainside.

Yang Lian’Er and Wu Mengchan exchanged a silent glance.

Yang Lian’Er secretly regretted her past laziness. She had accomplished nothing, and now, far from being able to help Wu Liangchen, she had become a burden.

Wu Mengchan, on the other hand, secretly resolved to find a way to learn martial arts so she could help her brother.

Soon, Wu Liangchen returned, saying with some excitement, "There’s a cave nearby. I checked it out. It’s in a very hidden location, perfect for us to hide in."

Wu Liangchen then led the two of them to the cave. It wasn’t large, but it was surrounded by barren stones and situated on a steep slope, making it extremely well-concealed.

Wu Liangchen used the same technique as before, carrying his sister on his back and grabbing Yang Lian’Er’s shoulder to bring them both into the cave.

Compared to the freezing cold outside, the cave felt much warmer.

Wu Liangchen gathered more dry firewood from outside. Once a fire was lit, the cave quickly filled with a pleasant warmth.

Wu Liangchen put down all their things, keeping only his weapons and essential items on his person, before instructing the two.

"You two wait here. I’ll be right back."

The two of them, of course, knew what Wu Liangchen was planning to do on this trip. Wu Mengchan couldn’t help but say worriedly,

"Brother, why don’t we just forget about it? We can just leave this area as soon as possible."

Although Yang Lian’Er didn’t speak, she clearly felt the same way.

Wu Liangchen just smiled. "Don’t worry. I’m just going back to check on the situation. If an opportunity presents itself, I’ll take it. If not, I won’t be reckless. At worst, we can deal with it later."

Seeing him say this, the two young women knew that further persuasion was useless. They fell silent and watched as Wu Liangchen hurried away.

"Mengchan, you sleep first. I’ll keep watch!" Yang Lian’Er said suddenly.

Wu Mengchan wasn’t actually sleepy at all. After such a long and chaotic ordeal, any drowsiness she might have felt had long since vanished.

But she nodded anyway, leaning against a rock by the fire and closing her eyes, feigning sleep.

’There’s nothing I can do right now,’ she thought. ’I might as well conserve as much energy as I can.’

Meanwhile, Yang Lian’Er went to a small, narrow clearing near the mouth of the cave and began practicing the Hunyuan Stance.

...

Wu Liangchen moved through the trees at incredible speed.

Right now, a simmering rage burned in his heart, and he wanted nothing more than to return to Wuyang Guard as quickly as possible and unleash his fury.

After all, he hadn’t been involved in this incident from the start; he was a complete bystander. Yet he’d been dragged into it and even had an arrow shot at his back.

If his five senses hadn’t been far superior to those of an ordinary Martial Artist, allowing him to perceive the danger in advance and dodge, he might have been wounded by that arrow.

How could he not be furious?

And so now, all he wanted was to kill.

But just as he was about to enter the city, Wu Liangchen suddenly stopped in a tree. He took a deep breath and slowly calmed the fury in his heart.

Anger could grant a person strength, but it was the greatest enemy of a clear mind.

Since he was now entering the city for revenge, he had to remain clear-headed at all times and not act on impulse.

So, Wu Liangchen didn’t rush into the city. He first calmed his anger, then carefully went over his plan in his mind. Once he was sure he hadn’t missed anything, he covered his face with a black cloth, leaped down, and took advantage of the deepest darkness before dawn to sneak into Wuyang Guard.

The city had not yet awakened. Compounded by the incident from the previous night, the entirety of Wuyang Guard felt deathly still. There wasn’t a single soul on the streets.

This was also the coldest time of day. Sharp icicles hung from the gatehouse, reflecting the city’s image.

Just then, the reflection of a black shadow appeared on the icicles, flitting past at incredible speed.

Wu Liangchen crossed over one rooftop after another, finally stopping atop a tall building.

The location offered a wide view and was close to the inn where the incident had occurred, allowing him to observe the situation there from a close distance.

He saw that last night’s great fire had been extinguished. Wisps of smoke curled up from the ruins, and the air was filled with a foul, burnt smell.

A few points of light were circling the inn, likely patrols that had been left behind.

Wu Liangchen leaped down from the tall building and silently crept toward the nearest point of light.

It was two soldiers holding lanterns, chatting idly as they walked.

"Tsk tsk, I heard you made quite a haul last night. How’d you do? How many silver coins did you get?" one of the soldiers said with a chuckle.

"Not much. They were all just a bunch of paupers, how much money could they have? The important thing is, last night I came across a married couple. The little wife wasn’t exactly a beauty, but her skin was incredibly fair. So I took her right in front of her husband. The whole time, the little wife was crying her eyes out, and her husband didn’t dare to say a word, even though he was furious. Heh heh, it was fucking great!" the soldier said, a look of fond reminiscence on his face.

"You sure got lucky. I didn’t run into any pretty ladies. In the end, I got pissed off and crippled some little scholar. Dammit, I was searching him and he had the nerve to say something about ’an insult to a gentleman’s dignity.’ Well, I showed him what a real insult to a gentleman’s dignity is," this soldier said with contempt.

Wu Liangchen crouched in the shadows atop a wall, listening silently. The contents of the two soldiers’ conversation made his killing intent steadily rise.

"Alright, when we get off duty, I’ll take you to find that little couple. How about I let you blow off some steam, too?" the second soldier offered with a grin.

"That’d be great! I—" The first soldier was overjoyed. He had just started to speak when he suddenly heard a loud POP. An instant later, he felt a warm liquid splash onto his face.

Startled, he immediately turned his head to look. He discovered that the soldier who had been chatting with him just a moment ago now had a massive hole blown through his face. The back of his head was almost completely gone, and blood and brain matter were splattered all over the ground.

The gruesome sight made the soldier tremble violently, and he nearly pissed his pants. He opened his mouth to shout, but at that exact moment, a cold arm clamped around his throat from behind.

"I ask, you answer. One word of nonsense, and what happened to him will happen to you. Understand?"